At Daily Celebrations, quotations are part of the soul of the site — reminders that truth has many voices, and wisdom, once spoken, never fades. From Bartlett to Borges, these borrowed words light our way forward.

The father of quotation collections, John Bartlett (1820–1905) was born in Plymouth, Massachusetts. A high-school dropout, this self-educated editor published Bartlett's Familiar Quotations (1855), which included American, British, and Biblical selections. The original collection featured 258 pages.

“I have gathered a posie of other men’s flowers, and nothing but the thread that binds them is mine own,” Bartlett explained.

Still, Bartlett's work has become a legacy and a celebration. “Life itself is a quotation,” observed writer Jorge Luis Borges.

“I hate quotations,” said Ralph Waldo Emerson, “tell me what you know.”

Emerson aside, artist Allan Gallardo once said, “To quote is to think, to think is to learn, to learn is to live.”

Bartlett wrote nine editions in his lifetime. The 17th (2002) edition of the Familiar Quotations was 1472 pages and contained over 20,000 quotations representing 2,500 authors. The reference work remains a trusted companion for inspiration, creativity, and communication.

“It is a good thing for an uneducated man to read books of quotations,” shared statesman Winston Churchill. (And for the educated man, too, Sir Winston!)

“The wisdom of the wise and the experiences of the ages are perpetuated by quotations,” said Benjamin Disraeli.